Questions go on and on in parliament

It's the question time that never ends - and the government has accused the opposition of surrender.

While the prime minister - whoever that may be - is usually keen to bounce up at 3.10pm and ask for any further questions to be placed on the notice paper, on Thursday the queries just kept coming.

The coalition's Leader of the House Christopher Pyne was spotted scuttling around the backbenches handing out pieces of paper, presumably with more questions for ministers about their government's achievements.

At 3.30pm, with no end in sight, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten smelled a rat.

"Can the prime minister confirm that he's decided that today's question time will continue longer than any other day in the 45th parliament in order to prevent the house from voting on a royal commission into abuse of people with disabilities?" he inquired.

"What a declaration of surrender from the leader of the Labor Party," Prime Minister Scott Morrison replied.

"When has the Leader of the Opposition ever wanted to shut down question time when you've got a government that is happy to stand here and be questioned on our record, questioned on our achievements?"

Mr Shorten later asserted the prime minister knew he had lost control of the parliament and wanted to avoid losing another vote in a week when the coalition had already suffered an embarrassing loss.

Labor was keen to get to a vote on a motion that passed the Senate earlier in the day calling for the government to hold a royal commission into the disability sector, believing there was enough crossbench support to get it through the lower house too.

Greens senator Jordon Steele-John, who raised the issue in the upper house, came into the House of Representatives chamber in anticipation of the vote.

Frustrated with the government's tactics, he shouted: "Call a vote! Do the right thing by the people of Australia and call a vote," before being rebuked by Speaker Tony Smith.

Mr Smith later noted one question time in 2009 lasted for 126 minutes and it was the prerogative of the prime minister to decide when the session would end.

He also revealed at 3.50pm the message regarding the royal commission had not yet arrived from the Senate and wouldn't be dealt with on Thursday.

Debate in the lower house usually finishes for the day at 4.30pm on a Thursday, with members adjourning at 5pm.